Encounters with Unexpected Animals: Stories

by Bret Anthony Johnston

An imaginative, moving collection of stories infused with the magic and enigma of the human condition and drenched in Texas heat, from the best-selling author of We Burn Daylight.

Encounters with Unexpected Animals takes readers deep into the heart of bestselling author Bret Anthony Johnston’s home state of Texas, where teenagers search for love, parents grasp at connections with their children, and animals—real or imagined, familiar or unexpected—are reminders of the mystery, danger, and beauty of being alive.

In “Caiman,” a father buys a baby alligator in hopes of keeping his family safe. In “Soldier of Fortune,” a teenage boy dog-sits for his neighbors after tragedy strikes, and his innocent snooping uncovers the family’s most guarded secret. And in the luminous “Half of What Atlee Rouse Knows About Horses,” an elderly man’s heart is laid bare with the raw and breathtaking power of wild horses.

Johnston’s humor, empathy, and mastery of prose ring out through each story, bringing every finely-drawn character to radiant life. Individually, the stories are by turns suspenseful, poignant and exhilarating. Taken together, they reveal the abiding connections that lead us from sorrow and impermanence back to ourselves and, ultimately, to each other.

Genres: Short Stories

224 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication February 24, 2026

About the author

Bret Anthony Johnston is the author of the internationally best-selling novel Remember Me Like This, which was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers selection, and the winner of the 2015 McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns Prize. The book has been translated around the world and is being made into a major motion picture. Bret is also the author of the award-winning Corpus Christi: Stories, which was named a Best Book of the Year by The Independent (London) and The Irish Times, and the editor of Naming the World and Other Exercises for the Creative Writer. His work appears in The Atlantic Monthly, Esquire, The Paris Review, Glimmer Train Stories, Virginia Quarterly Review, The Best American Short Stories, and elsewhere.

His awards include the Pushcart Prize, the Glasgow Prize for Emerging Writers, the Stephen Turner Award, the Cohen Prize, a James Michener Fellowship, the Kay Cattarulla Prize for short fiction, and many more. His nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, the New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Tin House, The Best American Sports Writing, and on NPR’s All Things Considered.

A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, he’s the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship and a 5 Under 35 honor from the National Book Foundation. He wrote the documentary film Waiting for Lightning, which was released in theaters around the world by Samuel Goldwyn Films. He teaches in the Bennington Writing Seminars and at Harvard University, where he is the Director of Creative Writing.

Reviews

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are only two kinds of stories in Bret Anthony Johnston’s Encounters with Unexpected Animals. The excellent. And the extraordinary. And by extraordinary, I mean, “OMG, he just wrote something so amazingly exquisite and spot-on and TRUE that it’s laying my heart bare and it’s revealing something I’ve always known and yet I’ve never KNOWN I’ve known.”

Case in point. These are the last line of one of his longest short stories, The Beginning of Wisdom (curiously, this is not a spoiler because it will mean nothing unless you read the story): “He’s listening to the intricate music of longing and weeping when he must, He’s watching the clouds. He’s waiting and waiting, whiling away the hours until a storm gathers and his son can appreciate the painstaking labor of hope, the coded, sheltering lessons of sorrow.”

Many of his stories end this way, with reflections so poignant that I read them multiple times, and a 200-page collection ended up taking me a full week to finish. Animals figure in meaningful ways. In another favorite, Soldier of Fortune, a young teenage boy is asked to care for the dog of an older teenage girl, whom he has a crush on, when her little brother is severely burnt. He doesn’t realize it, but he is about to grow up fast. In another, Half of What Atlee Rouse Knows About Horses, an elderly horse-lover witnesses one of the collection’s most exquisite scenes: a grown stallion saving a drowning colt.

Then there is Time of the Preacher, which I recognized as a somewhat lighthearted addition to the collection, but it inexplicably moved me to tears – proving once again that reading touches each reader in broken places. It takes place during the pandemic when an ex-wife summons her ex-husband (who is wearing a bandana, not a mask) to search for a snake in a home that her renter – a preacher – just deserted. Or is the snake just a ploy? Once again, the last few lines are stunning.

The themes – people searching for connections and encountering the unexpected, the journeys and detours we take to understand ourselves and each other, the sorrows and the joys that are part of being alive – are all illuminated in this collection. I am so thankful to the author and Random House for enabling me to be an early reader and to share my honest and overwhelmingly positive review.

[Sacha · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

I love reading and teaching short stories, and I find short story collections to be such a gift, especially when sprinkled between dozens of back-to-back novels. They're typically a nice change of pace, and I really enjoy not just the stories on their own but also the messaging of the collection overall. For me, while there are some great stories here, it is that broad connection that really made this grouping shine. The author's note, replete with a well selected Pearl Jam lyric, really sealed that deal.

One obvious unifying note is the sense of place, and it's intriguing to observe a variety of characters operating in mostly typical aspects of life in their Texan settings. I thought I might have *not* positive feelings about potential tie-ins here, but I was pleased not to find myself put off.

While I enjoyed the whole group to various degrees, I did find some of the stories to be a bit *too* short, and there was one that was a strong standout in a positive way (which I'll keep to myself so you can make your own unmitigated determinations about the rankings). This is also my first experience with this author, so I'm now intrigued by the rampant appreciation for Johnston's previous work, particularly of a different genre. I am curious to know what I'll think of the different format and how much other readers' incoming appreciation for those earlier works impacts their impressions of this newest effort.

I enjoyed this very much not only because "I'd [also] rather be with an animal," but that didn't hurt. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Madison Dettlinger at Random House Marketing for this widget, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

[Susan Poer · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with all collections of short stories, I liked some of these better than others. All are set in TX and explore residents hopes, dreams, tragedies, and life events. I loved 'Paradeability' about a widower taking his son to a clown convention in Houston. Who knew all the types of clowns that exist, and levels of effort some go to in perfecting their craft. 'Soldier of Fortune' was also a standout about a lovesick teenager who finds out his crushes' deep dark secret. Many are very short with abrupt endings, leaving you to determine what happened. Many will also stick with you as you compare and contrast different yet similar experiences. There are many stories of unrequited love, and families dealing with tragedies. There aren't many animals in this book, and the story of the namesake only briefly mentions animals, so the title is a bit misleading. It's very well written, and although I haven't read the author's other book 'We Burn Daylight', this made me interested in giving that a look as well.

[Andy Krahling · Rating 4 out of 5]

The short story is sometimes an overlooked avenue for many authors -- I happen to love them. I had no idea what to expect from this collection, and I was pleasantly surprised. Set primarily in coastal Texas, these tales were examinations of humanity, from a range of different viewpoints. I loved the fact that many of the finales were open-ended -- you had to use your imagination -- it wasn't always clear as to the outcome.

The author wrote with humanity, humor, grittiness and love. While I didn't love all the stories, I really enjoyed most of them. The author has a good grasp on his characters and why they do what they do.

The author has a new fan.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

[Maureen Timerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories, some about 20 minutes long, others are shorter. The common thread is they take place in Texas.
Some of theses are very emotional, and animals are referenced, some more than others!
There are some surprises here, and youngsters dealing with actions of their parents, like with cars.
I liked the gift of caiman, oh my! Also an ex-wife having her ex-husband come and get a snake out of the rental, standing on counters? Also special horses!
There is a bit of humor here, and some were page turning, and in the end wanting more answers!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Random House, and was not required to give a positive review.

[Luv2TrvlLuvBks · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book was not in my usual wheelhouse, it was an unexpected surprise.

In a collection of poignant, short stories, this author manages to elicit strong emotions from his readers. Set in Texas, stories range from the sale of a car to questionable motives of a man for his son’s young girlfriend, the author memorably tells stories in small spaces leaving large emotions.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, Random House , via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

#EncounterswithUnexpectedAnimals #NetGalley

[James B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the ebook. This is a short story collection that takes us all over Texas. Children trying to figure out how to grow up, parents trying to connect with their kids while keeping them safe, and even an ex wife who asks her ex husband to stop by and then all these animals. A possible snake haunts one story, a baby alligator shows up in another and it is Texas, so horses are never far away, both broken and gloriously wild.

[Patricia Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

most stories set in Texas. most are about marginalized children. kids who eat halloween candies for dinner. kids who have to watch their elderly alheimer grandmother. kids who have friends next door who "live better" than them. most of the most interesting is a story about a little kid who suffers life changing burns. and finds out that the kid's mother is not whom he thinks it is.

[📚 Alana (professional book nerd)]

Thank you to Random House Marketing for sending me the arc!

[Jeremy Garber · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written collection of stories of some sad folks lost in their own despair. A man tries to connect with his son through attending a clown convention. People invest too much in their dream car, the girl across the street whose brother got scalding water thrown on him, trying to smuggle toys across the border to Mexico for overly avid toy collectors. Set in the author's home state of Texas, these folks are vividly drawn with clear dialogue - they're just hard to read about sometimes. But isn't that life.